‘Fatal mistake’ - Schumacher questions Doohan survival at Alpine

Ralf Schumacher has questioned Jack Doohan's future at Alpine following his "fatal mistake" during the Japanese Grand Prix. 

The former F1 driver referenced Doohan's terrifying accident in second practice at the first corner just over six minutes into the session.

At first, it appeared the 185 mph crash may have been due to a severe tailwind, and the car bottoming out. Alpine later confirmed, however, that it was due to an error by Doohan. 

The Australian failed to close his DRS before entering the corner, resulting in a massive shunt, forcing the team to change the entire car – excluding the power unit.

It was a major blow for Doohan after he had already missed first practice due to Alpine running reserve Ryo Hirakawa, who has since moved to Haas. 

As pointed out by Schumacher, Hirakawa impressed in the opening practice session and was close to Pierre Gasly, something Doohan has failed to do.

"He's driven by his own team, but also by his driving," Schumacher told Sky DE. "He makes a lot of mistakes and isn't fast enough. 

"One more thing happened in Japan. Ryo Hirakawa, who got into the car in the first practice session, was right on par with Pierre Gasly. 

"He [Doohan] got in and made this fatal mistake. This will be analysed from a team perspective. At the moment, he's overwhelmed by the situation. 

"They'll sit down with him, and I'm curious to see what happens. He's not certain to be in the next race."